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DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) - Twisting out of the hot sand of the Arabian Peninsula is one of nature's toughest trees. Known for its coarse bark and green canopy that provides rare shade from the sweltering sun, the ghaf tree has been a steadfast survivor in brutal desert.
But climate change, groundwater overuse, excessive woodcutting and increased camel grazing are threatening the tree's existence, environmentalists say.
The World Wildlife Fund and the Emirates Wildlife Society are launching a campaign to save the ghaf, hoping they can persuade the Persian Gulf country's government to declare it the national tree.
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